Special Feature

- Contributed by Mark Coles

In this edition of the LIGO Newsletter, we showcase the recent LIGO
Inauguration, held last November 11-12 at the LIGO Livingston Observatory.
We hope this expanded article provides an opportunity for those unable to
attend the two-day affair a chance to share in some of the events. The
Inauguration featured a scientific symposium; presentations reviewing
LIGO science, technology, and project management; keynote speeches by
National Science Foundation Director Dr. Rita Colwell, and United States
Congressman Richard Baker; as well as a tour of the LIGO Livingston
Observatory. Within this article are hyperlinks to video clips, program
agenda, speakers' presentations, speech summaries, and other
information that will allow you to share in the proceedings.

Our decision to hold an inaugural celebration was motivated by many reasons.
Chief among these was that it would provide LIGO with an opportunity
to thank the many industrial participants for their significant contributions
to the progress LIGO has made. We also wanted to recognize the
assistance of various individuals and organizations, such as the
National Science Foundation,
state and local governments, university
administrations, and others for making available the necessary
resources so that LIGO could be built. Another important motivation
was that the inauguration would provide a forum to present LIGO to a
wider audience within the scientific community so that LIGO's goals for
operation and future development would be well understood.

The inauguration was staged in two distinct parts: a
LIGO Science Symposium
held November 11, and then the
Inaugural Celebration
conducted the following
day, November 12. The scientific symposium featured prominent scientists
whose contributions to astrophysics, LIGO related science, and gravitational
wave experiments created the context, theoretical underpinnings, and
support within the scientific community for this bold undertaking. The
inauguration festivities on the next day were an opportunity for the LIGO
project management to recount the progress made so far, to thank the many
contributors to that progress, and to look to the future. It was also an
opportunity for members of the National Science Foundation (NSF), which
provides LIGO's funding, to share their views of the program and their
enthusiasm for the science.

Discussion and planning for the LIGO Inauguration began more than a
year ago. It was clear from the start that this event
would involve the participation of many individuals and institutions.
Identifying a single point in space-time where all the participants could
simultaneously appear (while always possible on a quantum level) was in
reality a major logistical planning problem. Everyone agreed on the
desirability of holding the event at a LIGO site so that participants
could see an observatory first hand. Choosing between the two
sites (shown in map at left)--either Hanford, Washington
or Livingston, Louisiana--was
difficult as there were compelling reasons for either location. It was
finally decided that the Livingston site (at right) was the
more favorable. Close to
New Orleans, it was more easily accessible to the many airline
travelers who would be coming from Washington DC and the east coast.

A second logistical concern related to the number of participants that
could be accommodated at Livingston. Conference facilities at both
observatories are modest; the largest gatherings held previously at either
site amounted to no more than about 80 people. And as plans developed,
the number of essential participants soared to well above that number.
It became clear that participation would regretfully have to be limited due
to space considerations, although we were able to increase our capacity
to handle a larger group by setting up temporary facilities.

Very early in the planning process,
Dr. Rita Colwell,
Director of
the National Science Foundation, expressed her desire to represent the
foundation and speak at the inauguration.
Dr. David Baltimore,
President of
Caltech, also indicated his willingness
to participate.
The overlap of availability of their very busy schedules in 1999 led to a
day when they would be simultaneously available,
November 12, 1999. With our date now defined, LIGO began to contact
its many esteemed industrial partners to gauge their interest in attending
a celebratory event that would recognize their contributions. The response
was more than favorable, and in many cases these partners also sent
posters or displays to elaborate on their contributions to LIGO. These were
placed on exhibit during the inauguration and can be viewed here (
posters ).
Additionally, many universities and government organizations
were critical to the construction of LIGO. Their assistance with gaining
access, permits, facilitating our relations with industry, and community
relations have been essential to our progress. Many of these
organizations were also represented at the inauguration.

A prime consideration in planning the inauguration was our desire to
include a high-quality symposium on LIGO related science. This program,
developed under the direction of LIGO Director Professor Barry Barish, included
speakers on theoretical and experimental aspects of the search for
gravitational waves, as well as related topics. We were very gratified that
every speaker contacted enthusiastically accepted the invitation to participate.

The next task at hand was to develop a general logistical plan for the two days.
As mentioned, space considerations and the number of people that could be
accommodated had weighed heavily in all our considerations. Early on in the
planning, many of those involved began to refer to the event as "the wedding."
The analogy seemed appropriate. Many of the considerations to be addressed
were similar: how many guests, who should be invited, transportation, lodging,
accommodations, preparation of the site, etc. I was reminded of the remake of
the movie "Father of the Bride," with Steve Martin. If you've seen it, you'll surely
remember "Hank" and "Frank," the wedding planners. I realized we needed our
own Hank and Frank to help us with all the logistics, the contracting of
outside services, such as catering, equipment and furniture rental, etc.
We obtained recommendations for a number of "event planners" (as Hank and
Frank's profession is known), and interviewed several. Fortunately, New Orleans
is a national leader in hosting conventions and various catered affairs. We were
able to choose between the services of several highly experienced organizations,
and we selected the Beuerman-Miller Group. They suggested that our staging
building (shown at right), which is basically a 12,000 square foot warehouse,
could be temporarily
transformed into an auditorium, a dining area, a lobby and reception area,as well
as a kitchen and preparation area for the catering staff. It turns out that there
is a highly developed infrastructure of businesses in the New Orleans
area whose mission is to provide precisely the services we required--transforming
even the roughest of venues into a comfortable location for a business
conference, a wedding, and yes, even a LIGO Inauguration. Fortified by this
powerful backing, we began to make detailed plans.

One of the attractions of selecting the Beuerman-Miller Group to assist with
the planning was its experience working with media organizations. We all felt
that the inauguration would be a great opportunity to introduce LIGO to the
general public, and to further outreach programs in development at both LIGO
Observatories. To accomplish this would require a partnership of the
Beuerman-Miller Group, with its connections to the local media, and the
Caltech Media Relations Office,
with its connections to the national press.
As the big day approached, local television and radio stations conducted
interviews, and print journalists ran a number of related articles--before,
during and after the event.

Guest list development was a never-ending task, from the very inception
of planning until the day of the event. (Anyone who has ever planned a
wedding can attest to this--and anyone who ever will is hereby forewarned!)
Our desire was to be as inclusive as possible within the limits
of our capacity, while giving emphasis to those industrial organizations
that had been so crucial to making LIGO a reality. In particular we wanted
to express our appreciation to those of our partners who traveled from great
distances--Europe, Australia, and Asia--to join us in celebrating.

November tenth was the day all the planning had to coalesce in a final day
of preparation. Our staging building was transformed, Cinderella-style, into
an auditorium and restaurant to accommodate one and all. Some photos showing
this transformation can be seen on our
Livingston Photo Web Page.
Carpeting, piping and draping, tables, chairs, staging,
decorations, audio-visual equipment, and the catering setup all came
together in a single, very long day.

First up was the scientific symposium on Thursday November 11. With
Adobe Acrobat Reader
(R), free for download, you can view the
symposium program
and the
speakers' presentations
in PDF format.
Photos of symposium participants can be found on the
Livingston Photo Web Page.
Also, Drs. Joe Giaime, Joe Kovalik, Anthony Rizzi, and Sanichiro Yoshida
acted as scientific secretaries for the program, briefly summarizing the
presentations of each speaker. Their reports are in Adobe PDF format and
can be viewed by clicking here (
summaries ).

One of the charms of Louisiana is that it has one of the most distinctive
cuisines in the United States. The inauguration provided us the opportunity
to share that with visitors. Thursday evening, an informal dinner for symposium
participants was held at Mike Anderson's Seafood Restaurant in Baton Rouge.
And because most of the representatives of industrial organizations arrived
Thursday evening via the New Orleans airport, a reception was held nearby at
the Windsor Court Hotel. Representing Caltech
at this reception were Professor Barish, President Baltimore, Professor Kip Thorne, and
LIGO staffers Gerry Stapfer and Fred Asiri. Photos from both the Mike Anderson
dinner and the New Orleans reception can be viewed on the
Livingston Photo Web Page.

Friday's inauguration program began at 10 am with welcoming and
introductory remarks by LIGO Director
Barry C. Barish,
Linde Professor of Physics at Caltech. Also speaking were the LIGO Project Manager
and Deputy Director, Dr. Gary Sanders, as well as
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Professor Rai Weiss. They recounted project milestones, the team that
had to be assembled to make LIGO a reality, and many of the technological
hurdles that had to be overcome along the way.
Kip Thorne, Richard P. Feynman
Professor of Theoretical Physics at Caltech and a leading advocate of LIGO, recalled
the scientific goals of the project, its motivations, and the promises that direct
detection of gravitational radiation offers us to improve our understanding of
dynamical processes in the universe.

Representing the National Science Foundation (NSF) were
Dr. Bob Eisenstein,
Director of the Division of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, and Dr. Rita Colwell,
the NSF Director. Dr. Colwell offered the keynote speech of the morning, voicing
a strong endorsement by the NSF of LIGO's goals and the perspective that the
Foundation is uniquely able to undertake high cost, high risk, high return projects
like LIGO. As such, Dr. Colwell asserted, the NSF provides a unique service to
society in stimulating research that could not easily be initiated by any other
federal agency.

A tour of the LIGO facility followed the morning program. A video clip of the
tour is also available on the Inauguration Web Broadcast Page. Photos of major
features of the LIGO Livingston facility and brief narratives explaining each
feature are part of the tour guide. A wealth of images of the Livingston Observatory
is available on the
Livingston Photo Web Page.
Information on tour arrangements for Livingston, Louisiana can be found by clicking
here,
or for Hanford, Washington by clicking
here.

Lunch followed the tour, with remarks by Caltech President David Baltimore;
Professor Claude Canizares,
representing the MIT administration, and
Congressman Richard H. Baker,
who represents the Louisiana
Sixth Congressional District (which includes the LIGO Livingston Observatory)
and who has been an enthusiastic supporter of the project. Congressman Baker
provided a rousing finale to the inaugural celebration, with his quote of the words
of Daniel Webster, written on the wall above the Speaker's Chair in the
United States House of Representatives. The photo at left below shows that
wall, the photo at right is a close-up of the inscription.

Video clips of these memorable speeches from the luncheon program can also be
viewed on our LIGO Inauguration Web Broadcast Page.

We used the opportunity of planning for the inauguration to offer an open house
to the general public on Saturday, November 13. Since the site had been already
carefully prepared, it was an easy extension to offer the same tour to anyone
else who was interested. The general public was conducted through the Livingston
Observatory on tours guided by the LIGO staff. We were extremely pleased that
over 750 people came to see us. As a result, many requests have since been received
for return visits by community and school organizations. The enthusiasm
of the public for the LIGO Project was invigorating. Scenes from several of our
tours can viewed at the
Livingston Photo Web Page.

We would like to thank all of those who worked so hard to make the events
surrounding the inauguration such a success. In particular, we thank the staff of the LIGO
Livingston Observatory, the LIGO Director and his supporting staff,
The Beuerman-Miller Group for their assistance with event planning and
media relations, the Caltech Media Relations Office, the "Livingston News,"
"New Orleans Times-Picayune," "Associated Press," "Philadelphia Enquirer,"
"Dallas Morning News," "Pasadena Star Tribune," "New York Times," Nature,
Science, Time Magazine, Margaret Robichaud Caterers, the Bill Solly Band,
the Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office, Lewis-Burke Associates, Caltech's
Division of Physics, Mathematics, and Astronomy, and the
National Science Foundation.